assertion of it by the House; and the regal authority would have received a wound, from which it would, with difficulty, have recovered. The motion of Mr. Francis was negatived by a majority of 116.

Towards the close of this session, Mr. Pitt entered into a general review of the financial state of the country, as a preparatory measure to the introduction of the budget for the year; for the arrears of the late expensive war rendered a still further supply necessary. In this statement he estimated the whole annual expenditure at £14,400,000; and proceeded to compare it with the annual income. As the ground of his calculation, he took the produce of the two quarters, ending the 5th of January, and the 5th of April, 1784, and the produce of those ending the 5th of January, and the 5th of April, 1785. The produce of the first of these quarters was £2,585,000; of the second, £2,198,000; of the third, £2,738,000; and of the fourth, £3,066,000. From this produce he deduced the probable amount of the yearly produce of the existing taxes, which he estimated at from £12,000,000 to £12,600,000. And, on another calculation, founded on the expectation of a progressive increase, but not as one on which much reliance ought to be placed, he made the probable yearly produce of

the taxes amount as high as fourteen millions and a half. The aggregate amount of the supplies, voted this year, was £9,737,868; but there was a deficiency of one million in the ways and means provided for them. This sum he proposed to borrow from the bank at 5 per cent. because the bank would advance the money as government called for it, and the interest was to be calculated only from the time when the different advances were made. But the most important operation of finance, at this moment, was the funding those many. bills and ordnance debentures, which had been left unfunded on the winding up the accounts of the war in the last session; these Mr. Pitt proposed to fund, in the present year, although they amounted to ten millions and ten thousand pounds.

The interest of £6,000,000 of these bills, at four per cent. had been already provided for; so that only £300,000 would be necessary for the interest of the remainder; and this, together with £50,000, for the interest of the loan from the banks, and £40,000 to replace a repealed tax on callicoes, would make the whole sum wanted about £413,000. Mr. Pitt proposed funding in the 5 per cent. because, although the immediate loss to be incurred by such preference would be about £30,000,

yet, from the facility of paying off that stock, whenever such an event should take place, there would be an ultimate gain of nearly £3,000,000.

The taxes proposed for raising the sum of £413,000 were an additional duty on men servants; a tax on female servants; a tax on retail shops; an additional tax on post-horses; a tax upon gloves; and a tax on pawnbroker's licences. These were estimated to produce £422,000. There were also some other taxes adopted, (without any calculation of their produce) on game certificates; coach-makers' licences; on carriages ; on the servants of bachelors; on attornies, and on warrants of attorney. Some opposition was made to the proposed tax on female servants, but the objections were overruled by the House, and all the taxes were agreed to.

In addition to the economical arrangements which Mr. Pitt had already promoted, in the different public offices, he now brought in a bill for "appointing commissioners to enquire into the fees, gratuities, perquisites, and emoluments, which are, or lately have been, received in the several public offices to be therein mentioned; to examine into any abuses which may exist in the same; and to report such observations as shall occur to them, for the better con

ducting and managing the business transacted in the said offices." The bill was opposed with great warmth, as being unnecessary, the Treasury being already in possession of the requisite power for instituting the proposed enquiries; and as being futile, from holding forth a prospect of reform, without the ability to realize it; on the other hand it was defended, on the ground that the objects it embraced were so numerous, as to require particular commissioners, while their number rendered their reform an object of consequence to the country. -These last arguments prevailed, and the bill passed into a law.

During this session, great progress was made in the arrangement of a new commercial intercourse between Great Britain and Ireland, which the relative situation of the two countries imperiously required. But the measures proposed, and the discussions to which they gave rise, must be reserved for another chapter.

CHAP. VI.

Retrospective view of the state of Ireland-Relative situation of the two countries, ill calculated for the preservation of harmony-Measures of the Irish Parliament-Volunteers of Ireland become a deliberative and political body-Reflections on their unconstitutional conduct-Conciliating measures of the English government-Legislative independence of the Irish Parliament acknowledged-The Irish Volunteers become clamourous for Parliamentary Reform-The subject introduced to Parliament, by Mr. Flood-Rejected-Declaration of the House of Commons -Address to the King-Violent proceedings of the armed Associations-Meeting of the Congress in Dublin-Prosecution of the Sheriff-Application of the Congress to Mr. Pitt-Mr. Pitt's answer-False views of Reform imputed to Mr. Pitt-System of commercial intercourse prepared by the British ministers-Resolutions, constituting its basis, submitted to, and adopted by, the Irish Parliament-Mr. Pitt opens the subject to the British House of Commons-Discussions thereon-Resolutions adopted-Amended resolutions brought forward by Mr. Pitt-Objections thereto-Passed by a great majoritySystem opposed by the British manufacturers-Favourable to the Irish-Great dissatisfaction of the Irish public at the proposed measures-A party anxious to promote a separation of the two kingdoms-Their motives explained -Debates on the commercial system in the Irish House